Automatically-operated explosion door



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HUGO r. nissan, or ROCHESTER, yNew YORK AUTOMATICALLY-OPERATED EXPLOSION DOOR `r`Application lcd October r2, 1928.

This invention relates to explosion doors and more particularly to the meansfor automatically opening and closing, these doors to allow trains to pass therethru without stopping.

rlhis and other objects of this invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings, the specification and thev appended claims forming a part thereof.

L In they accompanying drawings:

Figure lis 'a diagrammatic top plan view of a mine tunnel equipped with an explosion door andthe automatic means for operating it. f

Figure-2 is a diagrammatic side elevation ofthe same `mine tunnel, its explosion door land automatic operating means. 4 i Figure 3 is an enlarged side elevation and partial section of the controlling mechanism of'one ofthe controlling valves and thermeans for operating ythe explosion door. lFigure 4 is a top plan view of the controlflinfr'km'echanism illustrated in Figure 3. Bigure is an enlarged sectional view of ythe check valve used in the air 'line leading Vto the apparatus for operatingr the explosion door. a I

Mine tunnels are equipped at predetermined points with so called explosion doors -in order toprotect thestoppings between the 'tunnels The use of these explosive doors also enables a mine'rto be quickly and ksafely enn teijedv after r,an explosion. These explosion 'doors must be opened and closed 'for each r Atrain passing thru the tunnel so that a man- Iual operation of these explosion doors delays Y*the movement of the trains as they pass the explosion doors in their movement to and ',t'rom'the workings. ,y f `The subject matter of my present invenf, tion comprises means that automatically "operateto open an explosion door yon the approach of aitrain, keep the door open while V the train passes and then allow the door to 4" close y'againafter the train has passed the door, l'as will hereinafter be described.

L yCompressed air is used in all mines for many purposes and is therefore used in conne'ction with my invention as the medium Jfor 5 the operation of the mechanism. The 'air is Serial No. 309,873.

taken from the compressed air main l which is suitably located'in the tunnel. Two controlling valves 2 and 3 are used for the opening and closing of the explosion door and are located one on each side thereof at a predetermined distance from it. Each of these valves is connected to the compressed air main l by a feed pipe 4. Leading from each of the valves 2 and 3 are the pipes 5 and 6 respectively which meet at the check valve 7 and enter it from opposite ends. The check valve in turn is connected to the cylinder 8 so that on the admission of air into the cylinder thru the check valve,the piston 9 within the cylinder-is moved and swings the eX- plosion door open by means of a mechanism that will presently be described.

The controlling valves 2 and 3 are operated to admit air from the air main into the operatingcylinder 8 on the approach of the train and more particularly by the flange of each of the wheels of the locomotive and the cars as these wheels roll over the rail 10 of the track. F or this purpose the operating valves 2 and 3 kare located under the railk 10 on each yside of the door and the upper end of the i valve stem ll'of each of the controlling valves 2 and 3 is provided with a T head 12. These heads forma pair of ledges on top of each ywhich extends from the pivoted end of oney of the levers to the pivoted end of the other o1c the levers, so that both of the levers are held to a movement in a vertical plane between the guide rail 15 and the rail 10. A

sliding connection` between the free ends of rthe levers and the T head 12 of the Valve stem 11 is securedrby the pins 16, 16 which are carried 0ny the outer ends of the levers "and engage suitable slots 17, 17 in the T head.

Each of the valves 2 and 3 comprises a casing provided with a large cylinder 18 and a small cylinder 19. These cylinders are in line with each other with the one cylinder forming a continuation ot the other. The valve stem passes thru both ot the cylinders and carries the piston valve 2G in the small cylinder and the valve 21 Vin the larger cylinder. A head 22 closes the bottom oi' the casing and its large cylinder 18 and a suitable pocket in this head serves as a guide for the lower end of the valve stem 11. An expansion spring 23 surrounds the valve stern between the inside of the head 22 and the valve 21 and and is kept closedl while its expansive force normally holds this valve against the seat 2s provided by the shoulder that is formed between the large and small cylinder. Air from the pipe el is admitted intothe large cylinder 18 thru the inlet- 25` so hat when the valve stem 11 is iorced down by the wheel flanges the valve 21 is unseated and allows air to pass into the small cylinder and from there thru the outlet 26 into the pipe G and thru the check valve 7' into the cylinder 8.`

The small cylinder 19 is also provided with a' vent opening' 27 but this opening is'so located that it will he closed by the downward movement of the piston valve air is admitted from the large cylindery into the small cylinder. However, Yas soon as the valve stem is no longer depressed hy the wheels of the train and the spring 23 forces the valve stem back to its normal positiony in which the valve 21 is seated, the vent opening 2'? is uncovered'by the piston valve 20. rI he air in the cylinder 8 and the pipingleading to it can then drain thru the vent opening and allow the piston 9 of the cylinder 8 to move hack to its starting position and in so doing allow the' explosion door to close as will hereinafter appear.

The cheek valve 7 is provided to prevent air from one valve from iiowing into the other valve instead of iiowing into the cylinder 8 when but one of the controlling valves is operated hy the train as it approaches the explosion door from one side. rihe checlz valve comprises a hall 8() located in a horizontal cylindrical valve cage 81 with a y valve seat at each end of the cage. The pipesl and 6 lead into the ends of the cage 31 and when air is admitted thru but one "of the pipes the hall is forced againstthe seat at the opposite end oi the cage and closes the opening leading into the other pipe and the other control valve. rlhe air admitted from one valve can thus only iiow thru 'the openings inthe middle of the valve cage'of 'the check valve into the cylinder 8 connectedtheret-o. On the movement of the piston in the cylinder 8 the door is opened and the train can pass thru the opening in the tunnel that had heen 'closel hy it. Whenthe vrtrain reaches the valve on the/other sideV ot the door it is of course also operated so that air is then admitted into the check valve from both controlling valves. As the pressure of the air is the same in both valves the flow of air from one valve will however not interfere with the iiow of the air from the other until all of the cars-havev passed over the firstvvalve so that it automatically closes and shuts of the air thru it to the cylinder. The second valve will however keep on y admitting air to the cylinder'until the last of the cars have passed over it. The door is thus kept open until the whole train has passed the door and will only close aftery the-train has passed the second valve. In this way the pair of controlling valves operate to open the door on the approach of the train from either' side and keep the door open until the train has passed it and this withoutattention froml the' crew of the train. rlvhe connection Jfor the operation yO j k'the fle-91 by the PStOarod of the @vlinder 8 comf prises a pulley 354 which is carried at the. end of the piston rod. A cahlefor chain 36"extends from one side tothe other of the pulley and moves over it as the piston rod with the pulley 85 moves hack andv :torth-.V- One end 'of thev cableor chain 36 :is anchoredto the wal-1 while the other end is fastened to thegdoer and passes over the guidepulley When the piston red moves te theleft the @able or chain is thereore pulled with itsq that the end connected tothe doorl pulls and holds the door openl asL illustrated in, the figures. lVhen the air isy allowedf tov escapel froml the cylinder att-er the train has passed, the door the pist-on rod is pulled back .to the right into its normal or starting positionI by means of the cable 38 andtheweight which isfat tached to the (free. endthereoigV thus closing the explosion door after the train h'lA PSSid.

I claim: y' l i 1. In an apparatus-for automatically opening and closing an explosion dooigthe combination of a control valve comprising a casing, a pair of cylinders in said casing, a valve stem, a valve carried by said valve stem and adapted to open and close`v the opening hetween said cylinders,4 an inletkintol thevfirst ot said cylinders, a second valvecarried by said valve stem@ and located withinthesecond of said cylinders, saizdljast` named cylinder 'having a vent opening therein adapted to .he

opened and closed on the movement'o said last named valve, an outlet in said last named cylinder, a source of compressed vair connected to the inlet of said firstl named cylindenfsaid valve withinl saidv firstv namedlcylinder'hein adapted to control theflow of the-compressed air from` said first namedcylinder intog said second cylinder and out` thru the loutlet in said second named ,cylinder while. kthe vent opening in said vsecond namedwcylinden is closed by said valve. in said second named cylinder.

2. In an apparatus for automatically opening and closing an explosion door, the combination of a pair of controlling valves, a source of compressed air connected to said controlling valves, a check valve housing said control valves being connected to said check Valve housing, a ball valve Within said check valve housing, a pair kof valve seats Within said housing with an opening leading from said housing intermediate of said valve seats, the air from Vthe iirst of said control valves being adapted to seat said ball Valve on one of said ball seats and prevent air yfrom escaping into said second control valve, and the air from said second control valve being adapted to force said ball valve to seat on the other of said valve seats and prevent air from escaping into said rst control valve, a Working cylinder Connected to the opening intermediate of said valve seat, and means connecting said Working cylinder with said door to open said door on the admission of air from either one kor'both of said control valves.

In testimony whereof I aiix my signature.

kHUGO F. DISSEL. 

